The Power of Prayer....

I BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF PRAYER
I do believe in the power of prayer
What better way to communicate with the Father
It’s God’s proven way of talking to Him
Do it with meaning, not just on a whim!

In a quiet room, on bended knees
It’s quite easy to do this with ease
Open up and talk to your Creator
You must remember, he’s also your Saviour

Prayer is indeed such a powerful tool
Having this outlet doesn't make you a fool
Unfailing said, on each blessed day
Prayer's the best way to start and end the day!

I'll end today's post with a song that never fails to lift me spiritually. Everytime I listen to this song or sing it, I am immediately pulled into the ultimate Praise and Worship realm, where I begin to appreciate (yet again!) just how great our Creator is!

Carrie Underwood does a wonderful rendition of 'How Great Thou Art'. Hope you enjoy it.

Basketball season is over, or is it....

We’ve just finished Basket Ball season for my kids. Being new to town, our involvement in the entire exercise helped immensely in my discovery of my neighbourhood, as we went from one game to another.
I got to know all the schools within a 10 mile radius and how to get there.

I met with several equally determined parents, who gave up their Saturday mornings (and oftentimes weekday evenings) to ensure that they were always present to cheer their kids on. Our coaches were excellent - they made sure that it was not just about competition and winning, but also learning the rudiments of the game and how best to excel in the game, how best to excel in life generally.

We rejoiced at the end of the season because we thought Saturdays and weeknights now belonged to us, parents. We rejoiced too early....

It’s Track and Field season now and it appears this is going to be even more brutal. It’s 8am starts on the Saturdays when we have Track Meets.

I am thrilled for children (mine inclusive) that they have an outlet outside of the classroom to socialise and do something different. (Thank you - Parents, Coaches, Schools and Organisations in all you do to give kids memorable childhood experiences).

I guess I’m just a grumpy parent who wishes I could get to spend more time in the house that I pay for.

After a long and busy work week (I work from home, so I guess I shouldn’t complain too loudly...but hey, I’m still speaking for the hordes of working parents out there who have to endure this), you would think that the weekend should be yours to enjoy as you please.

But when you factor children into this (or any) equation, it’s a completely different story...

Devastation in Japan

Image courtesy msnbc.com

There’s devastation in the world today
Because of an earthquake, faraway
I was having breakfast, and eating my toast
When I heard about happenings, in Japan’s East Coast
Hundreds of homes have been swept away
Entire neighbourhoods turned into seaway
People are missing - cars, ships, boats and trains
Fear, chaos and confusion is all that remains

There’s devastation in the world today
One of the most shocking earthquakes occurred today
Oh dear Mother Earth, why do you rage so
Taking villages and cities, as the waters flow?
Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand and Samoa
Do you remember the one in 2004?
The Earthquake triggers and then comes the Tsunamis
Wreaking havoc and destruction, through all the cities


There’s devastation in the world today
Did you hear the news or are you locked away?
To offer assistance, you don’t need to be present
There are ways we can help, which will be heaven-sent
Prayers. Donations. Helping hands if you can
But do try and do something. Help the people of Japan
There’s devastation in the world today
What would you do, if it was coming your way?

 
If you are interested in making a donation, I'd recommend going to any of the leading News sites (bbc.co.uk, cnn.com, msnbc.com to name a few) and follow the links on the story to see how you can help. Thank you.

Spring break - what are you doing?

It’s that time of the year again.

I hyperventilate, my speech becomes slurred, I’m gasping for air and I am totally lost for words.

What triggers off this reaction? It's certainly not hay fever or anything that straightforward. It's the dreaded question – ‘What are you doing for xxxx?’
Substitute xxxx with Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Summer Holidays, any holiday!
In this case, it’s Spring Break.

Spring Break is next week for us and I still haven’t got an exotic location or activity lined up for my family. Everyone seems to have it all sorted out – flying to Europe, skiing in Colorado, road trip around Texas, intensive music/arts/sports camps for their child prodigies – name it – they’re probably doing it.

I have trained my antenna to pick up when this question is likely to come up in a conversation.

Cluster of parents
Parent 1 – Hey!
Perent 2 – Hello. Long time no see!
Parent 3 – ‘Hi. What a lovely day today’
Parent 2 – ‘I know. Isn’t it amazing how time flies? I haven’t seen you all in ages’
Parent 3 – ‘So true. I can’t believe it’s Spring break already and the kids break up on Friday.’
**** This is my cue to start walking away slowly, because the next question is always the one that triggers off my reactions
Parent 1 – ‘So what are you doing for the holidays?’

As predicted. Thankfully, I am a few yards separated from them, talking on my phone or texting (it doesn’t really matter who I’m talking to or what I’m doing, so long as I look busy and I am not interrupted!)

Now I’m not sure if this is just playground etiquette and if they’re really interested in what I have lined up for the holiday week. But my allergic reaction is playing up too badly for me to be rational about this. Are they even listening to my answer? Or are they just being nice?

I guess there’s always an easy way to find out. I’ve decided that the next time I’m asked the dreaded question.

‘So what are you doing for the holidays?’

This is going to be my standard answer

Clear throat before speaking to ensure you’ve got the attention of your listeners ‘Actually we’re going skiing in Colorado for a day, and then hiking in Africa for 2 days, after which we’ll be surfing in Australia for another 2 days, before a quick stop in Europe for some shopping and then finally arrive back home on Sunday, just in time for school on Monday!’

I think that should get everyone’s attention! (or not!). With my luck, I would probably get some criticism for packing too many activities into one week!

Statistics....

There are
• 7 continents on Planet Earth
• 195 countries in the world
• over 6 billion people on earth
• over 2 million people in my city alone.

Does that make you feel small yet?

But here’s another angle.

According to Pingdom, there are

• Approximately 1.97 billion – Internet users worldwide (June 2010).
• Approximately 255 million websites (Dec 2010)
• Approximately 152 million blogs on the Internet (as tracked by BlogPulse).

Do you see where I’m going with this yet?

I’m a blogger (albeit a very, new blogger). This means, my blog is one of the 152 million blogs out there.

I also know that there are 1.97 billion Internet users worldwide. This means, there are potentially 1.97 billion people out there who could be reading my blog (ok, maybe less, because not everyone speaks English)!

So far, I’m not doing too badly, if I go by the stats I’m getting. (the light green and dark green areas are where my readers are)

This is why my next pressing task is – how do I increase readership? How do I reach the 1.97 billion people worldwide?

My blackberry died today....

My Blackberry died today

Oh dear, what can I say?

I feel I’m trapped in a dark room,

Like a corpse in a cold dark tomb

My Blackberry died today

What a way to start the day

The new day, the new week

It hurts so much, I can barely speak!

My Blackberry died today

A truly sad day, if I may

It's sad to see, how addicted I’ve grown,
To that bit of black plastic I own!

My Blackberry died today
I’ve lost everything, I say
My contacts, my texts, my pictures, my friends

Is this where my life ends?

My Blackberry died today

"So what", I hear myself say

“I’m footloose and fancy free

And won’t be controlled by thee”

My blackberry died today

And deep down, I say Hooray

It’s peaceful now – I’m having so much fun

You see, the constant ringing is gone....

It's Mardi Gras

It’s Mardi Gras, It’s Fat Tuesday, It’s Pancake Day, It’s the Feast before the Fast!!!!

Having lived in New Orleans for 4 years and enjoyed 4 lovely Mardi Gras seasons, I would give anything to be in that location at this time. The ambience, the music, the food, the parades, the floats, the blast of colour!

Mardi Gras in New Orleans is a huge never ending street party and the whole town is agog with excitement and joie de vivre. It starts about 2 weeks before the actual Mardi Gras day and ends promptly at midnight on Mardi Gras.

It is the celebration of the day before Ash Wednesday, where everyone celebrates the eve of the beginning of Lent with dancing, feasting and merriment.

I thought I’d do a poem for this one...

As I sit here in the Quarter
Watching with my daughter
I see the colourful floats go past
On the Feast before the Fast

Mardi Gras is once a year
It doesn’t matter what you wear
Just come on out and join the crowd
It’s ok to be really loud!

Laissez les Bon Temps roullez
That’s what the Natives always say
Sitting in downtown New Orleans
Eating red beans, rice and collard greens

It’s Pancake Day
And come what may
I’ll eat to my heart’s delight
While dancing in the evening light

Purple Green and Gold
The Mardi Gras colours of old
It’s midnight now – time to clean up
And all before the sun comes up!

Photos courtesy Microsoft.com